Mysterious hippopotamus sighting in Chirumanzu ends in tragic confrontation
By Dumisani Ndlovu
A bizarre incident unfolded in Chirumanzu’s Ward 9, where a hippopotamus was shot dead by Parks and Wildlife Management Board officials after being spotted frolicking in Rutunga Dam.
The unusual sighting left villagers astonished, as it was the first time a hippo had been seen in the area.
According to Parks and Wildlife officials, hippos are known to stray from their habitats and travel long distances in search of food, making such occurrences, although rare, not entirely uncommon.
The hippo was initially spotted at Holy Cross Dam but had disappeared by the time officials arrived. It was later seen at Rutunga Dam, approximately 10 kilometers away, by siblings Tatenda and Takudzwa Maparangu. The siblings quickly alerted the authorities, and Parks and Wildlife officials promptly responded.
“We saw what appeared like a flat rock in the dam as the hippo was partly submerged. Curious at what it really was we were looking at, we moved in for a closer look and at that very moment, the hippo lifted its head right out of the water and that’s when to our shock and surprise, we were able to ascertain what it really was,” said Tatenda, the older of the siblings.
Villagers gathered to witness the unusual spectacle, but were warned to maintain a safe distance. “We were told not to move about or stray too close to the dam as a crowd had already gathered and was swelling in numbers by the minute,” said one of the villagers.
After several hours and five bullets, the hippo finally succumbed to its injuries. “Many hours and 5 bullets later, the hippo finally succumbed to the proverbial call of death and was seen to float on the surface with no further movement at all – a sure sign that it was finally dead,” said one of the Parks officials.
Getting the hippo out of the water proved a mammoth task. It took the timely intervention of Ward 6 Councillor, Winnie Dzingira, who facilitated the bringing in of a boat from Holy Cross Dam to the site. This enabled the Parks Rangers to enter the water, tie ropes to the hippo, and to a tractor on the outside of the dam, which then pulled the hippo out of the water and onto dry land.
Under the supervision of Parks officials, the hippo was skinned, and its meat was shared among the villagers. “It is one of our primary objectives as an organisation to ensure that we respond swiftly when we receive calls of such a nature to avert any possibility of a human-wildlife conflict situation emerging as human lives can be lost due to our delayed response,” said one of the officials from the Parks.
The incident highlighted the importance of swift response from wildlife authorities to prevent potential human-wildlife conflicts.
